A grand adventure into Spira
by Maxwell Cross
Summary: What happens when an ordinary guy suddenly finds himself on Spira? Read to find out! R&R please!
1. Chapter 1

Authors Note: Well, this is my first crack at a FF fanfic. I've been reading so many good ones as of late that I thought I'd give it a shot eh? That and since no one's been reviewing my Xenosaga fanfic...(cries) Ah well, here it is and I hopes that ye enjoys.

Disclamer: Ok, this is pretty standard. I don't own Final Fantasy X or it's characters. Like everyone else here my goal is simply to make a great story, not money so please don't sue me. I have nothing of worth!

How many times had he been through this? One hundred? Two hundred? He was just leading a normal life, not bothering anyone or doing anything to upset the natural balance of his or anyone else's life. So why then did he suddenly find himself here? On Spira of all places! This place wasn't real! It was just a game! A bloody videogame! None of it was real, just images on a screen that a player with a controller could manipulate. But for near that hundredth time that night he looked down at the small sleeping form who'd curled up and snuggled closer to his side for warmth, she had lots of energy even in her sleep and showed it whenever she moved or murmured something in Al Bhed in her sleep.

The young man turned his dark brown eyes toward the sky again and watched the stars twinkle, the occasional pyrefly wandered into his vision and moaned it's soft, sad song. Like the other denizens of Spira, he'd grown used to it and often ignored it. But at times like this, when he was the only one still laying awake at night and watched the pyreflies dance and sing softly. It brought an odd sense of comfort to him, he couldn't really explain why. How long had it been since he first arrived? A year? Or was it two? In truth he'd been there for nearly six months before he followed Yuna as one of her guardians during her pilgrimage.

"When did this all start?" He whispered to himself softly so as not to disturb Rikku in her sleep and thought back to the beginning.

Chapter 1

The real world

Nathan was a 23 year old man living at home with his folks until he could find his own path in the world. Though his father often said it, Nathan didn't believe that he had a handsome face or that he was good looking in any way at all. His eyes were a very dark brown that looked black from any distance beyond three feet. His head was crowned with curly, jet black hair. You know, the kind that could be grown into an afro if he wanted, but he never did despite other people urging him to do so. His skin was naturally tan, not darkly though and he never had to fear sunburn do to the genetic inheritance from his Africana American father. The reason Nathan thought himself unattractive was the fact the he weighed nearly 280 pounds, in his own mind he believed it something of a blessing as he carried it well and honestly didn't appear to be that heavy. He knew he'd always be a big guy, it was just the way he was built, like his father.

In any case, despite his weight he took good care of himself and was proud of the fact that unlike a few other people he knew who were his weight or even less, he could walk without panting after only a few steps. Like any young man, Nathan was an avid lover of videogames and anime and took great pleasure in playing or watching. True he did finish RPG's slower than others did but he enjoyed taking things slow and enjoying every minute of the game. However, his parents had been giving him no end of grief about how much he played. They had no problem with his playing, but they thought he played far too much and after years and years of bickering it all came to a head.

Nathan and his father finally had an out and out fight, neither were blessed with long fuses and now they argued heatedly. In the end though, both had walked away angry enough to punch holes in walls. In fact, his father did and it scared him and his mother to no end. In a rage of his own Nathan stormed to his room, ripped the PS2 free of it's cords and took it outside to the paved driveway where he proceeded to throw it down and jump up and down on it with both feet until it, the poor game inside and the controller that was still attached were destroyed.

After that, Nathan returned to his room and changed clothes. He left his room wearing blue jeans, a white t-shirt that was tucked in along with a blue button up shirt with black tribal patterns on it. The shirt itself was unbuttoned and fluttered behind him as his favorite steel toed work boots thudded heavily on the wood panel floor of the dining room. He passed by his stunned father who'd witnessed his rampage upon the game system that he had for the past four years, cared for lovingly and protected as he would a child. Nathan slammed the front door and passed his mother who'd opted to stay out of the fray and smoke a cigarette or death stick as Nathan had come to call them in an effort to get her to stop smoking them.

"Where are you going?" She asked him, concerned but still upset that he and his father had managed to piss one another off yet again. "Out." Was his terse reply and gritted his teeth audibly when she spoke again. "When will you be back?" Unable to hold his temper at such a stupid question, Nathan turned and raised his voice to bellow at her loudly enough to be heard from three blocks away. "WHEN I'M NOT ANGRY ENOUGH TO BEAT THE HOLY LIVING SHIT OUT OF THE IDOIT YOU CALL MY FATHER!" With that he spun on his heel and stormed off down the sidewalk, he didn't catch the hurt look on his mother's face and at the moment he wouldn't have cared if he did. She knew he'd taken walks like this before when his father made him angry so that he could calm down and think things through then come back and work things out as a reasonable adult.

Of course, reason was the farthest thing from his mind at that moment.

Nathan walked for over seven hours, muttering to himself and throwing angry looks at anyone who either approached him or stood in his path. Twice he'd walked into traffic and the driver of a car that nearly hit him swallowed his angry comment to tell the kid in the road to watch where the hell he was going when Nathan glared at him, daring him to start something. The main problem that Nathan faced now was that his enjoyment of videogames wasn't just because it was fun but it was an escape. When he played a game he could visit exotic worlds, meet strange and interesting new people or girls that didn't run away or avoid him because they saw his fat and not him as a person. For him, it was a way to become someone who wasn't him, and now he'd destroyed that only comfort. True he had quite an imagination and loved to write stories like Xenosaga: The beating of her heart. (Hint hint….laugh) But it wasn't enough.

It was well past dark when he returned home, and though he knew both his parents were angry at him they obviously weren't going to kick him out since the front door was still open. As quietly as he could he crept in and locked the door behind him then went to his room. By now he'd had time to calm down and think things through like a rational adult, even so he knew that he'd be walking on paper thin eggshells for awhile. Tired from his walk as well as viscously stomping the life from his PS2 and yelling at his father, Nathan climbed into bed fully clothed and sighed. "I'm really in it now….aren't I? I wouldn't be surprised if Dad really did throw me out this time. I know Mom probably isn't too happy with me after I yelled at her….maybe I should get up early and stay out of the house as long as I can the next few days…." He yawned loudly and pulled his cell phone from his pocket to check the time, it was three in the morning. Well he'd get a little bit of sleep at least, with that last thought he rolled over and let himself drift off to sleep.

Final thoughts: Wow, ok so it didn't exactily start out as an FF fanfic did it? laugh If you hadn't noticed, yes I did use myself use myself as the main character though I'm not quite that violent and I certinly don't yell at my dear, sweet mother. So, read it, review it and tell me what you think and I shall work on chapter 2. Exit, stage left! Exits and promptly trips over ropes which sends sand bags and curtains flying in all directions. Oops...


	2. Chapter 2

(Update)

Ok, aplogies all around for those of you who've been waiting. Yes I know it's been almost a year (maybe longer) since I started this story and I'm sorry I've kept you waiting. Work, searching for work and writting too many stories at once are to blame. But! To make it up I've added three more chatpers with another one the way. mumbles As soon as I write it... Anyways, here it is, read it, enjoy it and review!

Chapter 2

Welcome to Besaid!

Nathan was fitful in his sleep, his room was the hottest in the whole house and he didn't have an AC to cool off, only a small fan that was prone to falling over. It wouldn't surprise him to wake up sweating, but he was starting to have some trouble breathing which often happened during summer. The wall next to his bed as cool at night, the layout of the house had the wall next to his bed being the other side of the wall to the living room. And directly across the living room was a window AC which meant cool air hit the far wall and cooled it. The result was that he'd often curl up and move as close as he could to the wall and have little air to breath.

But this was different somehow, he wasn't just having trouble breathing he wasn't breathing at all! His eyes fluttered open and as usual the darkness of his room greeted him but something was different here too. Normally the VCR on top of his TV gave off a small amount of light but in the pitch blackness of night it gave off enough to see his way to the door if he needed to get a drink of water or go to the bathroom. No, now the light source was coming from above him. Nathan looked up and blinked his eyes against the sudden sting and realized that the light was moving as if he were looking at it through water.

_Water?_ He thought and looked at himself and very nearly panicked when he realized what was happening. _I'm in the bloody OCEAN!_ With that, he swam as fast as he could for the surface, his lungs felt as though they were expanding to the point of exploding in his chest until he broke the surface. The gasp of air he took in was almost a roar as he fell back down, he'd swam so fast that he'd actually jumped out of the water but not all the way. He looked around wildly as he sucked in air through his mouth but he could make out very little, his eyes stung from the salt water and for the time being blinded him and without fresh water he couldn't clean them. The most he could tell was that it was night and the full moon was the light he'd seen from below the waves. The water wasn't cold, it certainly wasn't warm but it wasn't freezing, nonetheless he was soaked and having trouble staying afloat. Mentally he refused to take off his boots, mostly because of the way the laces were set up. In order to take them off he'd have to bend over and obviously that wasn't gonna happen here.

It was then that he realized that he still held his cell phone in his left hand, quickly he pressed a button then groaned when the screen didn't light up. Even blind as he was the light from his phone would have been bright enough to see like the moonlight. _The damn thing isn't water proof…..even if it was, how in the hell am I supposed to let anyone know where I am? I don't know what ocean I'm in! And how the hell would I explain to the rescue crew that one moment I was in my bed and the next nearly drowning in the sea? They'd lock me up in the nut house before my socks had a chance to dry and throw away the key!_ Nathan sigh and closed his eyes for a moment. _Well, I suppose the only thing I can do is wait. I can't see anything like this so I'll have to wait for the salt to clear from my eyes, besides it's the middle of the night. I couldn't see any islands or land masses in the dark anyways so I can't waste my energy swimming in a randomly picked direction. _He hefted the water logged phone then hurled it away, hearing it skip once before it splashed and sank.

Nathan did his best to keep his head above water, remembering his swimming lessons from the YMCA as the moon slowly set. During the night, other thoughts occurred to him. What if there wasn't any land nearby? What if he truly was in the middle of the ocean? If that were the case then sooner or later he'd run out of energy and drown. Worse, what if he'd somehow landed in shark infested waters or jellyfish! Silently, he prayed that the moon would sink faster and the sun rise sooner and continued that prayer, muttering it a little louder whenever another thought of how he might die popped into his mind. When the sun rose, he laughed almost hysterically and made a silent promise to NEVER swim in the ocean again if he could help it. Yessir, nothing but nice clean, animal free public pools for him from now on.

By great good fortune, there was an island nearby and again he thanked God that he hadn't started to swim in a random direction. If it had come to that he'd have followed the moon which would have led him AWAY from the island! Even though it was only a few miles away, Nathan was tired from treading water all night and while he knew enough to get to shore he wasn't an Olympic swimmer. It took nearly three hours for him to swim the distance to the island, he suspected that he was farther away from the island when he first surfaced and that the tide had slowly pulled him closer.

As he got closer, he struggled not to waste his energy with frantic swimming to get there faster. That and if there were sharks in the water, frantic movements meant a wounded animal which in turn equaled free lunch. Once he got within half a mile he started to slow, his energy beginning to give out and he had to let the tide carry him in the last hundred yards or so. Once he felt land, he used the last of his energy to haul himself up on all fours and crawl slowly from water, after all if he'd let himself collapse there then there was a good chance the surf would drown him or even carry him away again.

Tired as he was, something about this beach tickled his memory as if he'd been there before or perhaps seen it. But he couldn't be sure, with Nathan if you showed him a picture of a beach then put him on it he wouldn't know it was the same beach from the picture. The same could be said with any place in a picture, the only way this place could seem familiar was if he'd either been there before or if he'd seen it hundreds of times before in pictures rather than once or twice. But none of that mattered to him now, he no longer felt the water washing over him and with grateful sigh he left himself collapse to the sand and drifted off into exhausted sleep. His last conscious thought was _I hope some crab doesn't decide to use my mouth as a cave……that would really suck……_

He wasn't quite sure just how long he'd slept, was it a few hours or a few days? However long it was, it wasn't enough as his muscles screamed in protest when he pushed himself up and rolled over. _My clothes are still wet but not soaked and the sky is blue. I remember it was still rose colored from dawn when I got here, wherever here is._ He blinked once then again, but when his eyelids went down, they stayed down and again he slept. When he woke again, some two hours later he guessed, he felt a little stronger but only a little and his muscles still screamed at him as he sat up and looked around slowly. Something about this beach was familiar…but what? There was a dock nearby, some fishing boats near small huts and fishing nets set up next to the boats. A blitz ball sat near the door of one of the huts and he could clearly see a box that curiously reminded him of a treasure chest….._ Wait a minute……a blitz ball? That can't be right…._

His head swung back to the hut in question and his eyes bulged, ready to pop out of his head. _It…..it IS a blitz ball……Oh my God……I'm on Besaid Island…..I'm…IN Final Fantasy X! _"C'mon now Nathan…." He said to himself, his voice somewhat raspy since his throat was parched. "This has to be some kind of weird dream, it has to be. I mean come on, me? On Besaid?" _But in your dreams you never felt pain or fear, even in nightmares. Remember that dream where you fell from the top of the ferris wheel? You didn't feel a thing when you landed. So why then did you feel like you were drowning? Why did your eyes sting from the salt water and why are you exhausted now? AND why did you appear dressed as you were when you fell asleep? You and I both know that you never look at yourself when you dream and you never know what you wear. This CAN'T be a dream._ "Damn it….." He muttered. "I hate it when that little voice is right……"

Slowly he pushed himself to a stand and realized why he didn't recognize Besaid before, in the game he'd always seen the beach during the day with the sun overhead. He'd first seen it here in the pre-morning light and from a different angle. "I've got to try and get to the village…….wait…who am I kidding? If this really is Besaid Island and not some messed up dream then there's fiends about. I'm in no shape to fight and even if I was, I don't know how to." Nathan turned slowly to watch the ocean he'd just come out of and half expected to see Sin staring at him, how else could he have been brought here? But there was nothing there except the water. "A good thing, I suppose." He said softly and refrained from speaking until he could find some water. _Otherwise this poor little island would be torn apart….besides….Sin doesn't show up at Besaid. Now then, since I can't get to the village on my own the only thing I can do is wait for the Aurochs to come and practice. I'd better watch out for stray…._ His thought was cut off when a blitz ball suddenly smacked him in the back of the head with enough force to knock him down. Tired as he still was, it was more than enough to daze him and make him see double. He almost didn't hear the person who'd kicked the blitz ball speak to him. "Sorry about that, I didn't think anyone was down here yet. Hey….you ok? Hey, hey! Cap'n Wakka! CAP'N WAKKA!" After that all went black.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Now the fun begins

Nathan awoke slowly, his muscles not quite so sore anymore but still unhappy with him and dry. His eyes drifted open slowly and took in his surroundings, he was in a hut somewhere in Besaid village judging from it's size, contents and the sounds he heard from outside. It was evening but not yet full night, his stomach rumbled but he didn't yet have the strength to get up and move to well. His eyes scanned a small table next to the bed he was in and saw a bowl of strange fruits on it, he blinked once and took a moment to pick a fruit that looked something like a pear and flung out his arm. Luck was with him as he managed to grab hold of it and dragged it back for a closer look. In the dim light it looked like a pear only in shape, the texture he couldn't quite place and the smell reminded him of bananas.

"Oh screw it…" He muttered and took a bite of the small fruit. He only tasted it going down, it was something like bananas but he didn't pay it much mind. Two more bites and the fruit was gone, and with his hunger satisfied for the moment he let himself fall back to sleep.

When he woke up next it was morning or rather mid morning and didn't feel sore anymore or tired. "It's about damn time….." He muttered and sat up slowly, looking around. He only had a moment when two men stepped into the hut, there could be no mistaking the first one. Only one man had bright orange hair that defied gravity like that, the other wore priestly robes so obviously he had to be from the temple. Wakka broke into a grin when he saw Nathan sitting up. "Welcome back ya? Nice to see you awake finally, you been out for two days now. I know Jassu's got a pretty good kick but I didn't think it'd be enough to knock you out." Nathan blinked for a moment then spoke. "Oh, uh no, no it wasn't Jassu's fault. I was very tired see…."

The priest broke in. "Yes, we know. And judging from how wet you were, you were obviously in the water for quite a length of time. Though I've never seen anyone with clothing quite like yours, where are you from stranger and how did you end up here on Besaid Island?" _Oh great, what do I tell them? Well, the truth I suppose….._ He reached up and scratched the back of his neck, a sign of nervousness for him, as he started to speak. "Well, truthfully I don't know quite how to explain it….I was sleeping in my own bed one moment and then the next I opened my eyes and I was about eighty feet under water….." He trailed off, of course that was nuts! Who would believe that? "Maybe you got to close to Sin, ya? I did hear that a boat went missing near Besaid not to long ago." Wakka said thoughtfully and the priest nodded his head in agreement as if that were the most logical explanation. "But your alive and safe now! Praise be to Yevon." Then both men bowed with their arms held before them, it was that sign of victory from Zanarkand in the beginning of the game. _If I told them this WAS a game they'd either think Sin's toxin really messed with my head or brand me some sort of heretic. I'd best play along for now until I can find a way home…..wait a minute…..why should I go home? Mom and Dad are still angry at me and I have only what's in my room. No money, no job, no girlfriend. This is the chance of a lifetime! I'm sure as hell not gonna pass this up!_

By the way, what's your name?" The priest asked, to which Nathan blinked. _I can't give them my real name, I mean what kind of heroic name is Nathan or Nate anyways? Oh! I got it!_ "My name is Jack, Jack uh……er……I can't remember the rest." That would hold them till he could think up a suitable last name.

"Well then Jack, welcome to Besaid Island. My name is Wakka and I'm the captain of the Besaid Aurochs!" The man said with a huge grin then indicated his hand to the priest. "And this is the head priest to the temple. Hey, maybe you should go and pray ya? Maybe it'll help you get your memories back faster." Jack looked at him with an eyebrow raised and shook his head, he did believe in God but he wasn't much of a church going man. "No….not yet….I think…I'd just like to have a look around." His nose wrinkled and he looked down at himself. "Eh……as soon as I can get my clothes washed and get a bath……and eat….I'm starving!"

Some time later Jack sat in Wakka's hut, and dressed in of all things, the robes of an acolyte from the temple. "This isn't exactly my style……." He muttered to himself as he shifted under the robes and grimaced, his clothes were clean but would take awhile to dry. He'd had to stand over the woman who'd washed his clothes and made extra sure she was careful with his blue tribal shirt, thankfully all of his clothes were cold wash only. "Sorry brudda, but I didn't think you'd like our uniforms so this is all we could get ya?" Wakka had said after handing him the robes. He'd seemed puzzled by the way Jack insisted that he be left alone to change and the way he dove under the covers when Wakka peeked in to be sure he was ok. "You sure you're a man? Cause the only time I've seen someone do that was when I walked in on Lu…." He trailed off.

"Of course I am!" Jack yelled then muttered in a softer voice. "I'm just….not happy with my body and I don't like showing it off, ok?" Wakka still looked puzzled but kept his mouth shut when Jack gave him the glare o' death. Now he sat, watching the village through the opening of the hut while munching on a fruit that seemed to be like an apple but with a strange minty aftertaste. _Better get used to it….it could be worse. It could all taste like dirt or ass or…..goodness knows what else…._ Wakka stepped in and sat down next to Jack as he popped the last of the fruit into his mouth. "Why don't you take a walk around the village? You can't stay cooped up in here all day you know."

Jack shrugged, for all his thoughts about this being a grand adventure he certainly was shy about going out there. "N.no….that's ok I'm happy where I am…." He said softly then found himself being hauled to his feet by Wakka, the man may have looked goofy but he certainly had a good deal of strength! "C'mon, everyone is curious about you, so go out there and introduce yourself, ya?" Jack stumbled more over his robes than from the force of Wakka's playful push out of the tent. "And don't come back until dinner time, ok?" After taking a moment to adjust the robe so wouldn't trip on it he faced the hut and stuck out his tongue before turning and nearly running into a little girl who'd been watching him intently since he first stumbled out of the tent. "Hi…." he said, only slightly creeped out by the way she stared at him. "Hi!" She said brightly before going on. "Did you really come from the ocean?" Jack looked at her then noticed some of the other villagers were watching him too and whispering amongst themselves at the strange arrival.

"Oh boy…." He muttered.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The summoner, the black mage and the angry kitty

It was just after lunch and Jack had ended up sharing it with the little girl's family who had continued to bombard him with questions as some of the other villagers had until he cited his desire to explore the village on his own for a time. He still felt odd in the robes given to him to wear so he went by Wakka's hut long enough to snag his clothes, the jeans were still a touch wet but he'd worn them that way before and let his body heat dry them. Rather than run the risk of Wakka seeing him in the hut again before dinner, Jack opted to go to the temple and change in one of the back rooms. Most of the villagers were still curious about him but were polite enough not to stop him and ask questions when they saw that he was heading for the temple.

Inside it was quiet as a church should be, well except for the chanting song in the background. When he'd first heard it back home he thought little of it, after hearing a far more chilling version of it when Yuna danced on the water of Kilika to send the souls of those who died in Sin's attack, he disliked it somewhat. But that was years ago when the game was still new, he'd gotten over that now and found himself humming it softly to himself, it was rather comforting really. "Ah, hello again Jack." The head priest suddenly spoke to him and broke him out of his silent musings with a quick shake of the head. "Oh, uh hello."

"How are you feeling? Much better now that you've had some rest?" The older man asked and Jack nodded. "Oh, yes thank you. I just came by to return these robes since my clothes are dry, can I change in a back room perhaps?" Jack asked and the priest nodded with a smile, guiding him to a room in the back while telling him to call should he need anything. Once Jack finished changing he took a moment to look down at himself and sighed. Those robes had made him look well, not quite so large. Perhaps he could ask the priest to let him borrow them a while longer yet?

He spied a mirror nearby and went over to look at himself, once he did he scowled. His hair was frizzled from the ocean water and lack of combing. "Geez….I look like I stuck my tongue in a light socket…….." After he combed his fingers through his hair, he grimaced again. It didn't help much but it was better than nothing. _I'll just have to ask Wakka if he has a comb I can borrow, I mean c'mon that hair style CAN'T be natural. I don't care if it IS a game._ He lifted his chin to look at the light growth of a beard, he'd shaved the morning before he and his father started to fight, so it must have been a few days since then due to the growth. "Hmmmm….well…I suppose it couldn't hurt to let it grow a little…"

On impulse he struck a body builder pose and looked at himself with a grin. "Oh yeah….I'm studly…" He laughed a little then continued to strike various poses while making the odd grunting noises that body builders always made until he heard female laughter in the doorway. Jack spun quickly to face the source of it and froze. Yuna stood there with one hand over her mouth and her eyes partly closed as she tried to contain her giggles at his antics. Once she managed to control herself, she bowed to him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to walk in on you. When I saw someone in here I tried to leave, but you started making those funny poses and I just couldn't help myself." Again she started to giggle, not as much as before but still she smiled as she did while her eyes sparkled.

Jack stood stone still, unable to speak while his mind raced with all the velocity of a slug.

"Are you alright? Oh, I hope I didn't offend you!" She said, suddenly worried at his lack of response. Jack had never blushed in his life, instead he just sort of froze and went wide eyed with surprise while his mind tried to start up again. Finally his brain shouted at him. _Say something you ass!_ "Uh, no…no….you didn't offend me….I uh….er….um…..I was just changing my clothes….that's all….." Jack said as he started to relax and look less wide eyed. Seeing Yuna on the screen, in pictures and in his mind was one thing but actually seeing her with his own eyes in the flesh was something else altogether. She was just as stunningly beautiful as he'd thought she was, more so now that she was flesh and blood rather than pixels.

"Still, I apologize for interrupting you….perhaps I should go…" She said as she started to turn away, Jack all but leapt at her. "No! No, it's ok. I was just goofing off really, I'm finished now so you don't have to go. I'm Jack, it's nice to meet you miss…?" He said, waiting for her to finish. "My name is Yuna, it's a pleasure to meet you Jack." She said with a smile and bowed. "The pleasure is mine miss Yuna." He replied before going on. "May I ask you something? Are you by chance a Summoner?" She blinked at him in surprise before speaking. "Y-yes, I am. Well, a summoner in training at least…." She said softly. "But how did you know?"

"You seem different from the other people here, I mean aside from the way you dress of course. You just seem different, something about you says "I'm a summoner!" Ya know?" He said with a little bit of a shrug as if that explained it all clearly. Yuna tipped her head to one side slightly and watched him curiously for a moment before speaking. "Yes…." She started slowly. "….I think I understand what you mean." And nodded to herself as she stepped into the room fully, taking a moment to brush something off her dress and fussing with her belt sash so that the cords on it fell just so. That's when Jack realized that she was nervous about something.

_Is she nervous about talking to me? Or perhaps she had something to ask? I'd better break the ice before she figures out a way to put on her clothes without putting on her clothes……wait a minute….that didn't even make sense! C'mon man, get it together!_ "So, was there a reason why you came in? I'm not in your room am I?" Jack asked with a bit of a smile on his face to try and relax her or at least get her to stop fidgeting with her clothes. "Oh! Of course, I almost forgot. I was curious about you, so I thought perhaps we could talk and get to know each other?" She said, a hint of a blush forming in her cheeks that the somewhat darker interior of the temple almost hid. _Uh-oh….better be careful, I dunno how long it'll be till Tidus shows up and I don't wanna steal his girl. Besides, she isn't my type._

"Uh sure, that sounds good. How's about we go outside and get a little sun and walk around, I'd like to get my legs properly stretched." He said and the two of them departed, keeping respectfully quiet as they walked through the temple and into the village. "So, tell me about yourself!" Yuna said excitedly once they made it down the steps and onto the packed dirt. "I'm afraid there isn't much to tell about me since I really can't remember much about my life. All I really know is that I'm far from home and that I'm getting that "grand adventure" I've always wanted." He made that last sound as if he were merely joking and breathed a sigh of relief internally when Yuna giggled and nodded. "So, tell me about you. I've heard a little about who your father was but almost nothing about you aside from the constant praise and how much you like to play with the kids."

For the next hour and a half Jack listened to Yuna tell him about herself, from her life as a child in Bevelle and was utterly fascinated by it. This place was beginning to feel less and less like a game and more like a real living, breathing world. When Jack had played the game before he didn't have much interest in the history of Yuna, but now as he watched her talk about her life and the things she did as a child he couldn't help but hang onto her every word. The pair had walked about the village the whole time, stopping every so often when Yuna spoke of something particularly interesting or talked about something silly she'd done that left them both in laughing fits.

"Wow, Yuna. That's probably the most fascinating, funny, and interesting thing I've heard in…..oh heck it's the most fascinating, funny and interesting thing I've ever heard. I think you'd make a great story teller." Jack said at the end of her tale, her response was to turn red and laugh a little. "You really think so?" She asked and Jack nodded in response. "Oh heck yeah! Er, I mean of course, I really think you'd be able to make a great story teller." Before Yuna could respond, the voice of an older woman sounded behind them.

"Ah, so this is where you've gotten off to Yuna. I had wondered what could keep you from your studies for so long."

Both of them turned to face the voice, Yuna took on a deeper shade of red than Jack had thought possible for being caught out while he went pale in the face. The voice belonged to Lulu, the resident black mage of Besaid village and like Yuna she was just as beautiful as he'd thought, even more so in the flesh and oh the flesh he could see! _GET…..YOUR….HEAD….OUT….OF….THE….GUTTER!_ He screamed mentally and pulled his eyes from the view before him. Thankfully it seemed that only a moment had passed since Lulu spoke, thus her attention was still on Yuna and not his wandering eyes. "I'm sorry, but I was curious about the stranger, I mean Jack here…." She said apologetically.

"I see, so this is the young man that Jassu managed to knock out for two days." She said in a slightly amused tone of voice as she brought her gaze to him. Jack couldn't help but feel like she was weighing his worth in her eyes, he could only assume that she did this with anyone she met and most especially with someone who'd been alone with Yuna for so long. Her gaze became more and more intense as she looked him up and down, Jack began to fidget, shifting his weight from one foot to the other until Lulu nodded to herself slightly. "Yevon seems to have smiled upon you and granted you good fortune in arriving safely on Besaid, I welcome you Jack." Though her smile was warm Jack couldn't help but shiver, why did she look at him like that? Had he done something to offend her?

"Come Yuna, you must return to your studies." Yuna nodded and looked at Jack. "Goodbye for now, I hope we can talk again sometime." Jack nodded in return as she walked away towards the temple, Lulu's hand on his shoulder startled him to the point of jumping slightly. "If there is anything you need while you are here, don't hesitate to ask. Though I must ask you not to distract Yuna too much from her studies" She said but not unkindly and Jack could understand. Yuna needed friends on her up and coming journey but she still had a ways to go before she was ready and needed to prepare. "Yes, of course Lulu I understand."

Then she gave him that look again, not quite as intense as before but it was there then it was gone again when she pulled her hand away. "I must go now, Yuna will need my help in her studies but perhaps we can speak again at length. Meet me at the dock tomorrow morning after sunrise." The way she spoke and looked at him left no room to say yes or no, and even if he could she was already walking away.

_Oh man…..no wonder she didn't talk much in the game…..she'd have everyone eating out of her hand just by using her voice!_ His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of Lulu walking away, though the back of her dress was quite thick it still didn't hide the shape of her body which was, at the moment swaying back and forth almost sinuously. Jack couldn't pull his eyes away though he did try and gulped audibly when she passed from view then muttered to himself. "Wakka is a lucky man……I only wish she and I could……" He shook his head to clear it of that thought. "No, I can't…..besides I'm probably not her type…..being so big and all….." He sighed softly then turned toward the forest and jumped at the sight of Kimahri standing not five feet away. _What the? How long has he been standing there!_ Visibly shaken, Jack stammered out a greeting. "H-hi there…..you m-must be Kimahri. Yuna's told me so much about….." When he spoke her name, Kimahri rushed forward and cut him off at about with a growl as he picked up the shorter man by his shirt collar. Jack noted that though he was small for a Ronso, he had no trouble picking up his heavy body.

"Stay away from Yuna." He spoke in a harsh voice. It took Jack a moment to realize that it was his normal speaking voice and opened his mouth to argue then stopped and closed it. _Arguing with a Ronso who has you by the collar and can tear you apart at will isn't a good idea methinks._ Instead he merely nodded and was rewarded by being dropped to the ground and landing on his rump. The Ronso stalked past him into the village following Lulu's trail. "Ow….." Jack muttered. "….great….just what I need….I can't believe I forgot about him….I just hope I can get on his good side. Wait….does he have a good side?" He shook his head and stood carefully, dusting off his pants before heading back into Besaid village. He went straight for Wakka's hut and was greeted at the door.

"There you are, I've been wondering where you'd gotten off to." Wakka said and patted Jack's shoulder. "So, have you meet Yuna yet?" Jack glanced up at the slightly taller man. "Yeah, I met her. Nice girl, make a great story teller she would." Wakka grinned from ear to ear. "Ah, so you like her, ya?" "Well sure." Jack said, not seeing the obvious trap that Wakka had laid out. "She's a nice girl, fun to talk to and……hey, hey wait a second!" He glared at the man. "I don't think she's my type, ok?" "Aw, your no fun. Listen, I came out here to tell you that I can't let you stay here anymore. I don't got the room you know? The Crusaders Lodge should have lots of room, and you won't have to pay since you were affected by Sin's toxin and all."

Jack blinked. "Yeah…uh…thanks. Oh…..Wakka?" "Ya?" He looked toward the village entrance as he spoke softly. "I um…..that is….um….." With a frustrated growl he started again. "What I mean to say is that…well….I….don't really know how to fight and….I don't want to have to always ask someone to go with me if I want to leave the village, you know? Is there anyway you can teach me how to fight?" Wakka watched Jack speak and took on a serious expression as Jack voiced his request. "It's more than that, isn't it?" He asked after a pause. Jack blinked, had he been that easy to read in his request? "You don't just want to learn to fight, most people just learn when the fiends are out and avoid them instead of learning how to fight them, ya? You want to train to fight….so you can beat Sin, don't you?"

_Well given the fact that I probably won't be able to go home until then, yes._ He thought to himself. "Yes…..I do." He said softly. "You want to be a Crusader, don't you?" "Yes I….what? No! No, no, no, no, no I don't wanna be a Crusader!" Jack said after taking a step back and appearing horrified. "Oh? What then?" Wakka asked and looked surprised when the shorter man looked sheepish. "I….want to be a Guardian…." "A Guardian to Yuna? But you just met her!" Jack quickly put a hand over Wakka's mouth to quiet him. "Yes I know that! But… being a Guardian just feels….I dunno…..right somehow. Besides I'm not demanding it, I'll ask and she'll decide if she wants me with her or not. What's more, I really do want to learn how to fight. If I'm going to find my way home I'll need to learn to fight sooner or later, right?" After a few moments Wakka grinned and clapped him on the shoulder again. "Right!"


End file.
